We’re in the year’s Endgame people (I’m so sorry I had to make that joke). It’s time for me to start binging TV shows in the hopes of catching up on all the things I’ve missed, as well as the movies still in theaters! This means upcoming reviews for not one, not two, but five different movies (hopefully!), including Widows, Bohemian Rhapsody, Boy Erased, Mirai, and The Nutcracker and the Four Realms. I won’t give away too many of my thoughts, but I will say that Widows is a marvelous piece of intelligent popcorn fare (kinda like The Godfather), Rhapsody features one of the best performances of the year in one of the worst films, Erased is kinda plain but incredibly well-acted, Mirai was shockingly unwatchable, and Nutcracker featured great cinematography surrounding a horribly clichéd story. I’m hoping to get a series of reviews up this week (especially the ones I’ve been promising for some time but haven’t completed yet), so look for those soon.

With all the new films I’ve been watching, I haven’t had a chance to watch many older films. However, I did have a chance to go see White Christmas on the big screen, which is the only way to see it. It’s hard to dislike White Christmas; at worst it’s earnestly corny, and that’s part of what makes it so endearing. And those dance numbers are to die for. Meanwhile, on the other end of the spectrum, I also watched The Childhood of a Leader, Brady Corbet’s directorial debut, in preparation for Vox Lux this Thursday. I’m not entirely positive that Corbet pulled off his goals inside the movie (I wish he’d had a little more time to explore the themes he was going for), but he does know how to put together a plot. And that score is exquisite – he absolutely knows how to use music inside of his works.

While my home viewings may have been lacking, I absolutely made up for them in terms of my television viewing. I’ve started working on my end-of-the-year television lists, and while not everything has lived up to the hype, there have certainly been several that have wowed me. For example, the Dirty John television series isn’t as captivating as the podcast was, but man, Eric Bana and Connie Britton are great on it. It feels like a solid throwback to the days of made-for-TV movies. Then there’s shows like Homecoming, which possess an air of mystery and nuance that help keep things moving when the show starts to meander. And then there’s shows like Killing Eve, which won me over from the very first scene. I am in love with this show after one episode, and I do not expect to slow down now. Expect it on my year-end list for sure. Oh, and I also used this week to catch up on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, which may not be as perfect as it was in Season 3 (although it’s close), but is somehow still putting out a perfect song in every episode. Man, I’m jealous of how smart that show is. Oh, and as we are now in the middle of the Christmas special season, I also watched my all-time favorite special, A Charlie Brown Christmas, as well as Rudolph and Frosty’s reruns for good measure. Nothing like a little Christmas cheer to get into the heart of the season. And I even went out to see a play! Well, a pantomime at the local theatre in town. It was interesting, to say the least, but I absolutely dug the comedia dell’arte format and the little references scattered throughout. If you’re Ann Arbor-based, it’s worth a viewing, at least!

This concludes this week’s What I Watched, What You Watched. This is a big week for nominations, lists, releases, and more, so I will do my best to keep up and give you all the hap-hap-happiest Sacred Wall Christmas since Bing Crosby tap danced with Danny F*cking Kaye. Have a great week, everyone!

Travis Burgess is the Founder, Writer and Chief Editor at Sacred Wall. Graduating in 2016 from the College of Wooster with a Degree in English and a Minor in Film Studies, Travis decided to use his encyclopedic knowledge of pop culture to inform the world, and turn his critical eye towards his true passions.